How Many Episodes of Serial Are Left?

I know, I know, I'm waaay late to the Serial podcast party — but at least I made it here eventually! I'm only two episodes in, but I'm finally beginning to understand at least small parts of what people have been talking about on my Facebook news feed for well over a month now — and it feels so good! If you're even later to Serial game than I am, here's the scoop: It's a weekly NPR podcast that tells the true story of the murder of 17-year-old high school student Hae Min Lee in Baltimore in 1999. Like all compelling true crime tales, not everything is as it seems. The show premiered on Oct. 3, and new installments are released to iTunes on Thursdays. If you've just started listening to the podcast (or are planning to start soon), you might be wondering: How many episodes of Serial are there in total? How many episodes are left? And how much time do I have to get all caught up?

Don't worry, I've got you covered.

There will probably be 12 episodes in Serial's first season. I say "probably" because, well, the producers aren't exactly sure how long it will run yet. Sarah Koenig, the show's host, said in an October interview: "For us, that it's a podcast is so liberating. We can tell it as long as we need to tell it, and we don't have to worry about it." This month, senior producer Julie Snyder told Yahoo! Tech that she didn't know for certain when the podcast would end because they were "still doing the reporting." Makes sense. So, there you have it: Serial's first season will have roughly 12 episodes, but it sounds like there's potential for more.

That being said, episode 9 of Serial premiered on Thursday, Nov. 20, so it's possible that there could only be three episodes left. In other words, if you want to take part in any of the interesting and important Serial conversations that are almost certainly going on around you right now, you need to get listening.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to take my own advice and queue up the next episode.

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